1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a lid assembly for attachment to a storage cart. More particularly, but not by way of limitation, the present invention relates to a system and a method for establishing a pathway that directs articles from a floor across a lid assembly to a storage cart, such as for collecting waste or recyclable materials.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many typical storage carts, such as waste collection bins or recyclable materials carts, are rectangular, plastic containers having two wheels. Moreover, storage carts may be hitched for tandem movement and may also feature stackable properties. Often storage carts have large volumetric capacities. Accordingly, integrating two wheels with most storage carts provides a preferred means for transport as opposed to lifting the entire storage cart over long distances. The typically rectangular shape provides an accommodating configuration for use with most automated hydraulic lifter trucks. Illustratively, a storage cart may comprise a standard 96 gallon, two wheeled waste storage cart. Waste is often collected for a period. Subsequently, the waste storage cart is heavy when full and is thus rolled curbside in an upright position for pickup. A side-loading, automated garbage truck having hydraulic lifts that best conform to its rectangular shape lifts, empties, and returns the waste storage cart to its curbside location for future collection.
Storage carts are used in a wide variety of applications. Illustratively, storage carts may be used in food service, health care institutional, industrial, maintenance and custodial, as well as document shredding and recycling applications. For example, in an industrial steel mill, bits of scrap metal are collected from the floor and placed in a storage cart. Specifically, scrap metal is gathered on the floor, collected in shovels or dust pans, lifted, and placed within the vertically positioned storage bin. Unfortunately, scrap metal may be hot, sharp, heavy, and difficult to manage while transferred from the floor to the storage cart. In another example, cleaning up litter after a large public event, such as an entertainment event, is quite difficult due to the limited holding capacity afforded by standard dust pans for transferring litter from the ground to an upright storage cart. At times, transferring material from the floor to the upright storage cart can be cumbersome, messy, and potentially hazardous. Unfortunately, there is no known device or method for neatly and safely transferring large volumes of articles from a floor to a storage cart.
Therefore, a need exists for a system and method for neatly, quickly, and safely transferring large volumes of material into a storage cart. Many other problems and disadvantages of the prior art will become apparent to one skilled in the art after comparing such prior art with the present invention as herein described.